


Retribution

by EmeraldPhoenix1221



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-11
Updated: 2020-11-11
Packaged: 2021-03-09 19:55:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,567
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27501922
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EmeraldPhoenix1221/pseuds/EmeraldPhoenix1221
Summary: After her brother is horrifically maimed by their father in a 'duel,' Azula runs her options, and decides there's only one thing she can do to ensure his safety.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 47
Collections: Avatar: The Last Airbender, Discord Community Archive





	Retribution

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Azula Lied](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/712042) by @blueskittlesart (Comic), heavenly-dusk on tumblr (Idea). 



> So, this is an AU, obviously. But, for additional context, the key divergence point is that Ursa and (to a lesser extent) Iroh were much more involved in Azula's upbringing, actively trying to counter Ozai's grooming. She had begun to detest her father more and more after her mother was removed from the equation, and it boiled over at Zuko's Agni Kai.

If she was being honest, Azula hadn’t yet made up her mind.

As she waited in the hall outside the war room, she, for the fourth time that day, went over her options. They were few. She could do nothing; let this blow over. She could try talking to her father; but both her uncle and her mother had always explained that the less time she spent with him, the better. He couldn’t be trusted.

That left only one realistic choice.

She thought back to her mother’s last words to her and Zuko. ‘ _Be kind. And keep each other safe.’_

A light commotion from the room shook her from her thoughts. Several generals filed out, a few bowing to her in acknowledgment. She smiled in response. Finally, her father appeared in the doorway, speaking with someone Azula didn’t recognize; she’d have remembered those dumb mutton chops. An admiral, maybe. Her father flashed a soulless smile.

The same smile he wore as he melted her brother’s face off two days earlier.

Zuko’s inhuman, primal screams of agony burned through her veins, and the horrifying image of his injury flashed before her eyes, both seared into her memory.

Her jaw set. She was no longer conflicted.

Trying to calm the fire she knew was in her eyes, she put on her best ‘daddy’s little girl’ act and strode up to her father.

“Good evening, daddy!” She bounced slightly on and off the tips of her toes with her hands clasped behind her back.

The Firelord looked down at her. He never knelt to speak with her like her mother or uncle; less noticeable now that she was older, but still. “Hello, Azula.”

“I’ve been practicing my lightning bending. Would you like a demonstration?” She tilted her head to the side in an effort to be endearing.

Her father gave that same smile, devoid of warmth and emotion. “Of course.”

The short walk to a practice room passed in silence. This room was out of the way, tucked in the corner of the palace complex. It might not have even been in use. The coast was clear. That was one hurdle cleared, leaving one… rather important one.

Azula had never actually created a fully-fledged bolt of lightning.

Her father shut the door and followed her to the middle of the training mat, hanging a little over a meter behind her as he gestured to the wooden dummy at the other end of the room.

Azula turned away from her father, took a deep breath, and closed her eyes.

She knew the theory well enough, so she had a feeling she could just figure it out. Sparks formed around her fingers as she drew her right arm out in a circle; she repeated the motion with her left, moving her body down and up in serpentine movements. The crackle of electricity grew louder with each movement, and she brought her hands, first two fingers extended, together in front of her chest. 

What was it her uncle said was key in lightning generation? Clarity of… mind?

Clarity of purpose.

_Keep each other safe._

Azula’s eyes snapped open. Spinning around on her right foot, something Ty Lee had taught her a few weeks before, she saw her father’s cold grin fade and his eyes widen in panic as time seemed to slow to a crawl. She aimed her fingers at his chest, planting her left foot behind her and bending her right knee.

A single bolt of lightning shot from her fingertips.

And found its mark.

Her father barely had time to cry out as he was struck by the lightning; Azula continued the discharge for as long as she could, face expressionless, pouring years of trauma and abuse into that one blue bolt. All she could see was her brother’s face. All she could hear were his screams…

It must have been close to three full seconds before she stopped, fingertips smoking and shaking. Her father dropped to the floor, a massive, charred and bloody wound on his chest. He began to choke on blood. Azula strode over to him, eyes wide.

He felt his chest, and stared at his blood-covered hand before reaching out in a vain attempt to grab her. She backed away immediately, and his hand fell away from her tunic and to the floor again.

She turned and ran out the other exit.

**...**

She didn’t stop until she had reached her brother’s infirmary room. Hands still shaking, she gingerly opened the door.

Her uncle Iroh sat at her brother’s bedside, softly crying as he held Zuko’s hand. Her brother only moaned in pain, still caught somewhere between life and death. She made her way over to him, grabbed his other hand in hers and squeezed.

“You’re safe now, Zuzu. I… I took care of it,” she whispered.

As she walked back to the door, she locked eyes with Iroh. His red and swollen eyes were questioning, searching for what she meant; as they moved down, Azula followed his gaze. There was a medium-sized smear of blood on her outer tunic. She and her uncle looked up at each other again. Her expression hard, she silently dared him to say something.

He didn’t.

He closed his eyes and sighed deeply before turning back to Zuko. Iroh was a lot of things, but he wasn’t stupid - she knew he’d put the pieces together.

Azula made a beeline for her room, praying she didn’t run into anyone. Thankfully, she was able to make the two minute dash without interruption. She closed the door behind her, looking around the room for - 

Cherries.

She spotted the bowl on the end table and quickly pushed it onto the floor, spilling the small berries out. Trying her best to get the angle right, she jumped and fell onto them. She picked a stem off of her as she got up and inspected her tunic. The blood was a slightly different color. _Close enough. I’m wearing red anyway._ All that was left to do was try to clean it.

She was furiously trying to scrub the fabric clean in the washroom when she heard a voice from her room.

“Princess…?” One of her servants. Imeyo. Azula had always liked her. Patrols must have found the body.

“Busy!” she yelled through the door.

“No rush. Take your time,” came the response. Azula was less than satisfied with her impromptu laundry work. It would have to do. _Might just burn it anyway… eventually._ Looking in the mirror, she practiced her ‘devastated’ face, furrowing her brow, opening her mouth wide, then only slightly. _Needs work._ _No time._ She opened the drain in the basin and made her way out.

Imeyo was sitting on the edge of the bed, and smiled softly at her. “Have an accident?”

Azula smiled back, hoping her servant couldn’t read the insincerity in it. “Kinda.”

Imeyo patted the bed next to her, and Azula hopped up, holding her damp tunic in her lap. 

Imeyo took a deep breath. “There’s no easy way to say this.” She turned to Azula. “Your father… has been found dead. The guards suspect he was killed, but…”

The mixture of shock and pain on her face must have been convincing, as Imeyo pulled her into a hug. Truth be told, she was only partly faking, but the emotion wasn’t on her father’s behalf.

“I’m so sorry, Azula.”

 _Me too,_ Azula mouthed into her dress.

**…**

A lot had happened in the three days after her father’s death.

Iroh had, as the only remaining adult member of the royal family, been named Firelord. There were whispers that _he_ had murdered Ozai to usurp the throne, but nobody had yet been bold (or stupid) enough to openly accuse him.

So far, no one seemed to suspect Azula, but there were very few people who could generate lightning.

And she was one of them.

She sat under a cherry tree in the royal garden, burning intricate designs into a piece of firewood, both to practice her bending and keep her mind occupied. Earlier in the day, she’d sent a messenger hawk to her friends Ty Lee and Mai, who were still living in other districts of Caldera, telling them to meet her here. They were a little late, but security had been tightened tenfold.

“Azula!” She looked towards the source of the voice and saw Ty Lee running toward her, with Mai following behind at a much slower pace. The acrobat jumped and pulled her into a short hug. “How are you doing?”

Azula just motioned to the ground. Ty Lee had sat down cross legged opposite her by the time Mai caught up. The older girl leaned against the trunk of the tree.

Ty Lee caught sight of Azula’s ‘art’ and let out a small ‘Ooo’ as she moved to grab it.

“Careful, it’s still-”

Ty Lee jerked her hand back. “OW!”

“Hot.”

Ty Lee put her slightly burned finger in her mouth as Mai leaned over to take a look at the wood. 

“That’s really pretty,” she said, and even though her voice was as monotone as ever, Azula could tell she meant it.

“Thanks.” She smiled, earning a small smirk in response.

“So… what’d you want to talk to us about?” Mai asked, her demeanor returning to the serious, dour one she was so often putting on.

Azula took a deep breath. “Well… You’ve heard about my father?” Her friends nodded. “I know who killed him.”

Ty Lee’s eyes widened, but Mai didn’t move.

“Can I trust you two?” she asked, looking at both of them in turn.

Ty Lee’s response was immediate. “Of course! You can trust me with anything!” Azula smiled slightly, then turned to Mai, who was now carefully eyeing her.

“What did you do?” Mai asked, her voice low and tone grave.

“Mai, I need to hear you say it.”

Her friend’s gaze never left her eyes. “You can trust me.”

Azula turned back to stare into her burned wood. “It was me,” she said, voice barely above a whisper.

“What?” Ty Lee’s disbelief was visible.

“I killed my father,” Azula repeated, voice louder now. Like a torrent, the words came faster than she could think about them. “I was at the Agni Kai, I watched him burn Zuko. Our mom said to keep each other safe before she left. She said that. And I couldn’t. I didn’t. I ran through what I could to do to make sure Zuzu was safe, to make things better, and that was the only thing I could do to make sure he would never hurt him or me ever again.” She felt the dam that separated her heart from her head cracking. “I needed to keep him safe.” She choked on the last word. 

On the verge of bawling, she continued, “I keep hearing his screams. I keep waking up in the middle of the night after dreaming I did that to him. I keep reliving that night with my father, knowing I wouldn’t have done anything different. I…” She had run out of words.

Ty Lee put out her arms and grabbed her in a big, tight hug, and she lost control. The enormity of the past week’s events came crashing down over her, and she broke down into sobs as she buried her face into Ty Lee’s shoulder.

She felt Mai sit down next to her and wrap the two of them in a hug as well.

In spite of everything, there in the embrace of her friends, she felt truly safe for the first time she could remember.

**…**

**Three and a Half Years Later**

“You know, I was a little afraid you’d be jealous of me being confirmed as heir.”

“Oh, please,” Azula replied with a dismissive wave toward her brother, even though she _was_ a bit jealous. “No, no. I would much rather enjoy all the _perks_ of royal life **without** all the responsibilities, thank you.”

Zuko scoffed and rolled his eyes, and she gave a light laugh.

The pair were on one of their frequent walks through the royal gardens, just after a state dinner where Zuko had been officially named heir apparent to the throne. In the years since the Agni Kai, the two of them had grown closer, talking and spending time together - they really felt like siblings. They took care of each other.

Azula hoped their mother would be proud. She nudged her brother’s side with her elbow. “Excited to see Mai for the first time as Mr. Crown Prince?” she teased.

“It’s not like I’m a different person,” Zuko replied, but kept his gaze on something in the distance. _Nothing in the distance, more like_ , Azula thought. He did that a lot. She turned around and moved in front of him, narrowing her eyes as she searched his face.

“You’re thinking about something.”

Her brother gave a dry laugh. “Very perceptive.”

“I have my moments. You wanna talk about it?”

He held her gaze for a few moments, then sighed. “Sure, why not?”

They sat down on a set of stone benches near a turtleduck pond. Azula instantly recognized the area.

“Hey, do you remember when we used to-” she began.

“Feed the turtleducks with Mom?” Zuko finished, then smiled. “Yeah, I do.”

“Hey, isn’t that the fountain I pushed you and Mai into?” she pointed to an ornate fountain over her brother’s shoulder. Zuko took a look.

“Yes.”

“Oh, don’t be like that. I apologized! Besides, you two _are_ cute together. And, that _was_ pretty funny.”

Her brother shook his head and smiled softly. She gently kicked his shin. “So, what’s on your mind?” she asked as she leaned in, chin in hand. “The peace talks? Mai?”

Zuko sighed. “Maybe it’s all that official state stuff lately, but… I’ve just been thinking.” He looked her dead in the eyes. “Do you have any idea who killed our father?”

Images of a night more than three years past flashed across her mind. The _CRACK_ of the lightning. The blue glow. Her blood-stained tunic.

Azula lied.

“I have no idea, Zuzu. Honest. I’ve wondered that myself.”

He nodded slowly, then turned to the pond. She followed his gaze. The setting sun had turned the water into a kaleidoscope of red and orange. A family of turtleducks swam across, softly quacking. After a few minutes, she stood up as her stomach growled. She ruffled her brother’s hair. “Come on, Mai and Ty Lee are probably waiting for us at Feng’s.”

Zuko got up, and Azula shot him a grin. “Race you there,” she said, punching him in the arm.

“Azula, it’s a two kilometer walk.”

“Race. You. There,” she repeated, leaning in with each word. Zuko raised his eyebrow.

“Go!” she shouted, and took off. She couldn’t help but laugh as she heard her brother shout after her.

She was never sure whether she had done the ‘right’ thing that night. It was retribution for everything he’d done to them, for everything he would have done to them. She had needed to protect her brother, and she wouldn’t trade the life she had now for the world.

No, she didn't know if it was the right thing. But she had no regrets. As wrong as it felt to admit, she didn’t even feel particularly torn up or guilty.

He didn’t deserve that much.


End file.
